Built by Frank Lloyd Wright in ‘56 (sorry, we have to include some historic background), in the charming town of Cloquet, stands a very special filling station. Known today as a gas station, this building was designed by the world-renowned architect as part of his Utopian, utilitarian and “Prairie School Architecture” vision of a new America. The structure remains as it was built by the McKenney Family of Cloquet, who were friends of Wright, and who still own the station. And it still has even the Ladies Lounge upstairs above the attendants area, which looks out over the driveway and the beautiful St Louis River – as Wright imagined it to do. This special perch was intended as a sophisticated waiting room to use while cars were being refueled or repaired. Even a special ladies restroom was in the lounge. “After our visitors hear the reasons for the lounge, they are eager to make the climb”, says Mike Mckinney, 3rd generation owner of this famous landmark, “and its fun to own such a historic landmark. We get calls and visitors every day.” Welcome back to yesteryear when gentlemen were, well, gentlemen, mechanics were honest and bathroom tissue was soft and cushy – if for only a moment. Ready to rock?
Okay, history can be fun, especially with a good story. Take the House on the Rock in Spring Green (WI): Alex Jordan — a budding architect — was dismissed at Frank Lloyd Wright’s Taliesin home (now the Frank Lloyd Wright School of Architecture™), near Spring Green with the declaration, “I wouldn’t hire you to design a cheese crate or a chicken coop.” Soon after, Jordan chose a pinnacle rock south of Taliesin to build a parody of Wright’s fancy-pants architecture in the form of a strange “Japanese house.” The ceilings were dangerously low (padded now to accommodate tourists) and the structure seemed to cling precariously to the odd contours of the Rock. When it was time to take over the family trade (and pursue a little personal retribution, it seems), Alex Jordan, Jr. decided to right his father, and teach Frank Lloyd Wright a thing or two about architecture. Jordan, Jr. took the project over in the 1940s and never dreamed it would attract a half-million visitors a year at $15+ a head. We said we’d cut some history, but you can do the math on this one. Saint Paul’s infamous gangsters and more — you got a problem with that?
Suddenly running into the wrong thug in that quintessential dark alley doesn’t sound so
bad. With the Saint Paul gangster hearsay, real bullet holes and other nasty nuances that tell the real tales of the 1920’s Wabasha Street Caves, you might expect your tour guide to be donned in a protective Kevlar vest. The truth is, the gangsters were mostly from Chicago, and were welcome to hide out in the caves and conduct business as long at the law wasn’t broken while in Saint Paul. Today, you can learn about the Caves’ unusual architecture and stories with catered dinner outings, receptions and specialized tours, like the hugely popular Gangster Tours that motor around Saint Paul. Gangster-attired step-on guides tell lively stories of the rogues who took respite in the former gangster haven, the very capitol city of Minnesota. “We’ve had tour groups from all over the world take our tours and then stop by the caves for retirement parties, unique get-togethers, catered lunches, and even swing dances,” says Donna Bremer, owner of the fun and historic Wabasha Street Caves. Just know that at the Wabasha Caves, the establishment now, “BANS GUNS ON THESE PREMISES.” Back to the future
As you know, group travel is not all about history and buildings. It is about building the future of group travel. “Every day, baby boomers (mostly empty nesters) are selling off their labor-intensive suburban properties, gravitating [to the cities all over America] towards “urban cabin” lock-and-go condominiums — spending more free time traveling – with more and more of this travel with tour groups,” says Lori Kearney, national account executive for group tourism at the Greater Minneapolis Convention and Visitors Association.
Home on Summit Avenue - Saint Paul
Fort Snelling Architecture - Saint Paul Stone Arch Bridge - Minneapolis
© Photo courtesy of Leon Kosek
Let’s be Frank
Castles in their backyard
“These people are the ones who jet down to the Caribbean — my goal is to show ‘em what’s right under their noses when they’re home, not on the beach,” Kearney went on to say. Under their very noses they’ll discover architectural gems like the American Swedish Institute (Minneapolis, MN’s Swedish Castle), the fascinating Ten Chimneys Country Estate (home of theater greats Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontanne in Genesee Depot, WI), to the Earth Lodges of the Mandan Indians (Bismarck-Mandan, ND), to the Corn Palace (Mitchell, SD), and even the town of Pella, Iowa where Dutch architecture reigns and everything is coming up tulips! So get the “inside” scoop on the most interesting and enticing architectural masterpieces and discover your motorcoach tours filling over and over again! I T I N E R A R I E S M I N N E S O TA S U M M E R 2 0 0 6
13
Reflection of Foshay Tower - Minneapolis Red Barn in historic Lydia, MN